THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. (Applause.) Thank you all very
much. Thanks for coming. You know, it turns out I am the first
sitting President to have visited Johnstown in more than 30 years.
(Applause.) All those other Presidents sure missed out. (Applause.)
Thanks for coming. I'm proud you came out. I'm honored you are here.
I'm pleased to be with the good folks here in Johnstown. I know you
like to hunt and fish. (Applause.) So do I. I know you care about
your neighbors. I appreciate that. (Applause.) I know you take your
baseball seriously. (Applause.) And from the looks of things, with
your help, we'll carry Pennsylvania in November. (Applause.)

I'm here to ask for your vote. (Applause.) And I'm here to ask
for your help. We have a duty to vote in this country, and I'm here to
ask you to register your friends and neighbors, and encourage them to
do their duty. (Applause.) And when you're out registering people,
don't overlook discerning Democrats. (Applause.) You might remember
my friend, Zell Miller. (Applause.) He represents a lot of folks who
understand that when you put Dick Cheney and me back in office, this
country will be safer, stronger and better for every American.
(Applause.)

My regret is that Laura didn't come with me today.

AUDIENCE: Awww --

THE PRESIDENT: She was a public school librarian when I asked her
to marry me. And she said, fine, I'll marry you, so long as I don't
have to give a political speech. (Laughter.) I said, okay.
Fortunately, she didn't hold me to that promise. You saw her the other
night in New York City. You saw how gracious she is, how strong she
is. (Applause.) I love her dearly. I'm going to give you some
reasons why I think you ought to put me back in office, but perhaps the
most important one of all is so that Laura is First Lady for four more
years. (Applause.)

I'm proud of my running mate, Dick Cheney. (Applause.) I admit
it, he doesn't have the waviest hair on the ticket. (Laughter.) I
didn't pick him for his looks. I picked him because he's a man of
sound judgment and great experience, and can get the job done for the
American people. (Applause.)

I appreciate Congressman Bill Shuster joining us today. He's been
telling me all along I need to come to Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
(Applause.) When I showed up, he said, you finally made it. I said, I
made it just in time to rally these folks to get ready to win this
election come November. (Applause.)

I want to thank your Mayor, Don Zucco, for joining us today. Mr.
Mayor, I'm proud you're here. Sometimes they say, well, do you ever
have any advice for the local officials. Mr. Mayor, fill the
potholes. (Laughter and applause.) I appreciate you coming, Mayor.

I want to thank all the state and local officials who are here. I
want to thank my friend, Victor Raia. He heads Veterans for Bush. And
I want to thank all the veterans who have joined us here today, as
well. (Applause.)

I want to thank the Wil Gravatt Band. I appreciate them playing
here. I appreciate the high school band that's here tonight. Thank
you for coming. I'm going to try to keep my speech short so you can
get home and do your homework. (Laughter.)

I want to thank all the grassroots activists who are here -- the
people who put up the signs and make the phone calls. I really
appreciate your help. (Applause.) I know you're working hard, but
keep working. And I'll be working right alongside of you. I'm looking
forward to the campaign. I'm going to tell the people where I stand,
where I -- what I believe and where I'm going to lead this nation.
(Applause.) I'm going to tell them that I have a plan to keep this
country of ours safer and a more hopeful America. I'm running on a
compassionate conservative philosophy that says government ought to
help people, not dictate to people. (Applause.)

I believe every child can learn. That's what I believe. I went to
Washington to challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations.
(Applause.) We've raised standards. We're measuring early to solve
problems before it is too late. We're ending that old practice of just
shuffling the kids through the system year after year without learning
the basics. We trust the local people to make the right decisions for
the schools. We're closing an achievement gap in America, and we're
not turning back. (Applause.)

I believe we have a moral responsibility to honor our seniors with
good health care. (Applause.) I went up to Washington to fix problems;
we had a problem with Medicare. Let me give you one example. Medicare
would pay tens of thousands of dollars for the heart surgery, and
that's okay. But it wouldn't pay for the medicine to prevent the heart
surgery from happening in the first place. It didn't make any sense
for our seniors to have a Medicare system like that, and it certainly
didn't make sense for the taxpayers. We have modernized Medicare. Our
seniors will get prescription drug coverage, and we're not turning
back. (Applause.)

I believe in the energy and innovative spirit of the American
worker and farmer and small business owner. And that's why we
unleashed that energy with the largest tax relief in a generation.
(Applause.) When you're out rounding up the vote, remind your friends
and neighbors that we've been through a lot. This economy of ours has
been through a lot. See, five months before I got into office, the
stock market had begun to decline. We had a recession. We had
corporate scandals, which affected our economy. And of course, we had
the attacks on our country. But we've overcome all these obstacles
because we've got good workers, good small business owners.
(Applause.) We've overcome them, too, because of well-timed tax cuts.

And this economy of ours is strong and it is getting stronger. Our
economy has been growing at rates as fast as any in nearly 20 years.
(Applause.) We're adding jobs here in America -- about 1.7 million new
jobs over the last 12 months. (Applause.) We've added 107,000
manufacturing jobs since January. The unemployment rate is now 5.4
percent. (Applause.) That is lower than the average rate of the
1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. (Applause.) The unemployment rate in your
great state is 5.3 percent. The economic stimulus plan we passed is
working. (Applause.)

I believe a President must confront problems, not pass them on to
future Presidents and future generations. (Applause.) I believe the
most solemn duty of the American President is to protect the American
people. If America shows uncertainty or weakness in this decade, the
world will drift toward tragedy. This is not going to happen on my
watch. (Applause.) I believe this nation wants steady, consistent,
principled leadership, and that is why, with your help, we're going to
win a great victory in November. (Applause.)

The world in which we live and work is changing. In the
generations of our dads and grandads, a man generally had one job and
one career, worked for one company, and the company provided health
care and a pension plan. It's a different world today. I understand
it's a different world today. Many women now work inside the home and
outside the home. The workplace is changing. Many people change
careers. Yet many of the most fundamental systems of our government --
the tax code, health coverage, pension plans and worker training --
were created for the world of yesterday, not tomorrow. In the next four
years, we will transform these systems so that all citizens are
equipped, prepared and, thus, truly free to make your own choices, so
you can realize the great promise of America. (Applause.)

Listen, any hopeful society has a growing economy. And I've got a
plan to keep this economy moving forward. To create more jobs in
America, America must be the best place in the world to do business.
(Applause.) That means we must reduce the regulatory burden on our
small business owners in America. (Applause.) To create more jobs in
America, we must stop the junk lawsuits that threaten our employers.
(Applause.) To keep jobs here and to expand our economy, Congress
needs to pass my energy plan -- (applause) -- a plan that encourage
conservation, encourages renewable sources of energy like ethanol and
biodiesel. It encourages clean coal technology. It is a plan that
understands that we must become less dependent on foreign sources of
energy. (Applause.)

Listen, to create jobs here, we've got to open up markets for U.S.
products. We open up our markets for goods from other countries, and
that's good for the consumer. And it's good for you. If you've got
more choices to choose from, you're likely to get the product you want
at a better price and higher quality. So what I tell countries like
China is, you treat us the way we treat you. America can compete with
anybody, anytime, anywhere so long as the rules are fair. (Applause.)

To create jobs we got to be wise about how we spend your money and
keep your taxes low. (Applause.) We have a difference of opinion
about taxes in this campaign. I'm running against a fellow who has
proposed more than $2 trillion in new spending so far.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: Awfully tempting when you're coming down the pike
to tell everybody what they want to hear. So they said, well, how are
you going to pay for it? He said, oh, that's simple, we'll just tax
the rich. There's two problems with that. One is that you can't raise
enough money by taxing the rich to pay for $2 trillion. There's a gap
between what he promises and what he says he's going to do. Guess who
usually has to fill that gap? Yeah. Here's the other problem. You've
heard that rhetoric before, oh, don't worry, we'll just tax the rich.
They hire lawyers and accountants and dodge, and you get stuck with the
bill. We're not going to let him tax you. We're going to win in
November. (Applause.)

Thinking about taxes -- thinking about taxes, the federal tax code
needs to be changed. It's a complicated mess. It is -- (Applause.)
It is full of special interest loopholes. Americans spend hours after
hours filling out their tax form. They estimate about six billion
hours worth of paperwork and headache on an annual basis is spent by
American workers and small business owners and big businesses. You
see, the American people need a simpler, fairer, pro-growth tax code.
In a new term, I will lead a bipartisan effort to simplify and make
more fair the federal tax code. (Applause.)

The job base is changing, and we've got to help workers gain the
skills necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century. That's why I'm
such a strong proponent of helping workers gain new skills at the
community colleges across this country. (Applause.) Most new jobs are
now filled by people with at least two years of college. Yet one in
four of our students gets there. So in our high schools, we'll fund
early intervention programs to help students at risk. We'll place an
emphasis on math and science. Over time we'll require a rigorous exam
before graduation. By raising performance at our high schools, and by
expanding Pell grants for low- and middle-income families, we will help
more Americans start their career with a college diploma. (Applause.)

In this time of change, we will do more to make sure health care is
available and affordable. More than half of the uninsured are
employees of small businesses. Small businesses are having trouble
with health care costs. In order to help those families, and help
small businesses, government should allow small businesses to join
together to purchase insurance at the discounts available for big
companies. (Applause.)

We will expand health savings accounts. We will make sure poor
companies have got community health centers. And we've got to do
something about these junk lawsuits. I'm telling you, the cost of
medicine is on the rise, because junk lawsuits are driving good docs
out of practice and running up the cost of medicine here in America.
(Applause.) You cannot be pro-doctor, pro-hospital, pro-patient and
pro-trial lawyer at the same time. (Applause.) You have to choose.
And my opponent has made his choice, and he put him on the ticket.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: I have made my choice. I am for medical liability
reform now. (Applause.) In all we do to improve health care in
America, we will make sure that health decisions are made by doctors
and patients, not by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. (Applause.)

In a changing society, ownership can help bring stability to
people's lives. That's why we want more people owning their own home
in America. The home ownership rate in America is at an all-time high
right now. Isn't that fantastic? Think about that. More people are
opening their front door, saying, welcome to my home, welcome to my
piece of property. (Applause.) We've got a plan to continue to expand
home ownership to every community in this country.

And we also want to make sure that our pension plans are modern and
work. If you're an older citizen, you're in good shape when it comes
to Social Security. If you're a baby boomer, like me, you're in okay
shape when it comes to Social Security. But we need to worry about our
children and our grandchildren. (Applause.) I believe younger workers
ought to be able to take some of their own money and set it aside in a
personal account to make sure Social Security is available.
(Applause.)

We have a difference of philosophy in this campaign. If you listen
carefully to the rhetoric, my opponent's programs expand government.
My programs expand opportunity. (Applause.) And I feel comfortable
doing that because I think the role of government is to trust the
people, trust the people with their own decisions, trust the people
with their own money, trust the people to make the right judgment.
(Applause.)

In a world of change, there's some things that just do not change
-- the values we try to live by, courage and compassion, reverence and
integrity. In a time of change, we must support the institutions that
give us stability, our families, our schools and our religious
congregations. (Applause.)

We stand for a culture of live in which every person counts and
every being matters. (Applause.) We stand for marriage and family,
which are the foundations of our society. (Applause.) And I stand for
the appointment of federal judges who know the difference between
personal opinion and the strict interpretation of the law. (Applause.)

This election will also determine how America responds to the
continuing danger of terrorism. Since the terrible morning of
September the 11th, 2001, we have fought the terrorists across the
Earth -- not for pride, not for power, but because the lives of our
citizens are at stake. (Applause.) Our strategy is clear: We're
defending the homeland, we're transforming our military, and we're
reforming and strengthening the intelligence services. We're staying
on the offensive. We're striking the terrorists abroad so we do not
have to face them here at home. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: We will work to advance liberty in the broader
Middle East and around the world, and we will prevail. (Applause.)
Our strategy is succeeding. Four years ago, Afghanistan was the home
base of al Qaeda, Pakistan was a transit point for terrorist groups,
Saudi Arabia was fertile ground for terrorist fundraising, Libya was
secretly pursuing nuclear weapons, Iraq was a gathering threat, and al
Qaeda was largely unchallenged as it planned attacks.

Because we led, because we acted, the government of a free
Afghanistan is fighting terror, Pakistan is capturing terrorists, Saudi
Arabia is making raids and arrests, Libya is dismantling its weapons
programs. (Applause.) The army of a free Iraq is fighting for
freedom, and more than three-quarters of al Qaeda's key members and
associates have been brought to justice. (Applause.) We have led,
many have joined, and America and the world are safer. (Applause.)

This progress involved careful diplomacy, and clear moral purpose,
and some tough decisions -- and the toughest came on Iraq. We knew
Saddam Hussein's record of aggression and support for terror. We knew
his long history of pursuing and using weapons of mass destruction.
And we know that after September the 11th, this nation must think
differently. We must take threats seriously before they fully
materialize. (Applause.)

In Saddam Hussein, we saw a threat. I went to the United States
Congress. I said, take a look at this threat, and they took a look at
the same intelligence I looked at. They remembered the same history I
remembered. They concluded that Saddam Hussein was a threat, and
authorized the use of force. (Applause.) My opponent looked at the
very same intelligence I looked at, came to the same conclusion we came
to, and he authorized the use of force.

Before the Commander-in-Chief commits troops into combat, we must
try all means to deal with any threat. See, I was hopeful diplomacy
would work. And so I went to the United Nations, and I gave a speech
at the U.N.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: They looked at the same intelligence I looked at.
They remembered the same history we remembered. And with a
15-to-nothing vote, the United Nations Security Council voted that
Saddam Hussein must disclose, disarm or face serious consequences. But
as he had for over a decade, Saddam Hussein wasn't interested in what
the free world has to say. As a matter of fact, he systematically
deceived the inspectors that were sent into his country. So I had a
choice to make, a choice that only comes to the Oval Office; a choice
nobody wants to make, but must be prepared to make: Do I trust the
word of a madman and forget the lessons of September the 11th, or do I
take action to defend America. Given that choice, I will defend our
country every time. (Applause.)

Because we acted, because we acted to defend our country, 50
million people now live in freedom. (Applause.) Fifty million people
are free. In Afghanistan, the world has changed since those dark days
when young girls weren't allowed to go to school and their mothers were
whipped in the public square. The Taliban were barbaric people. They
were backward. They had a dim vision of the world. Today, Afghanistan
is an ally. They're helping us in the war on terror. And over 10
million Afghan citizens have registered to vote in the upcoming
presidential elections.

Despite ongoing violence, Iraq now has a strong Prime Minister, a
national council and national elections are scheduled for January.
(Applause.) We are standing with the people of Afghanistan and Iraq,
because when America gives its word, America must keep its word.
(Applause.) We're also standing with them because we're serving a
vital and historic cause that will make our country safer. Free
societies in the Middle East will be hopeful societies, which no longer
feed resentments and breed violence for export. Free governments in
the Middle East will fight terrorists, instead of harboring them. And
that makes America more secure, and it makes the world more peaceful.
(Applause.)

Our mission in Afghanistan and Iraq is clear: We'll help new
leaders to train their armies and their police forces so citizens in
those countries can do the hard work of defending the hopes of many
against the terror of a few. We'll help them get on their way to
elections. We'll help them become more stable, and then our troops
will return home with the honor they've earned. (Applause.)

I'm proud of our military. I'm proud of our military, and I know
you are, as well. We've got a fantastic United States military.
(Applause.) I've had the privilege of meeting with the servicemen and
women who wear our uniform. I've seen their unselfish courage. I know
their great decency. The cause of freedom is in really good hands.

I made a pledge -- I made a pledge to those who wear the uniform
and their families that they will have all the support they need to
complete their missions. That's why, a year ago, I went to the United
States Congress and proposed supplemental funding of $87 billion to
help our troops in not only Iraq, but Afghanistan. It was important
funding, really important funding. (Applause.) It was a really
important funding request because it funded body armor and spare parts,
ammunition, fuel, supplies needed for people to do their jobs. And we
received great bipartisan support, so strong that only 12 United States
senators voted against the funding request.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: Two of those senators were my opponent and his
running mate.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: In fact, only four United States senators voted to
authorize the use of force and then voted against funding our troops.
Two of those senators -- two of those four were my opponent and his
running mate. When asked to explain his vote, he said, well, I
actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: Now, I suspect -- I suspect that not many people in
Johnstown, Pennsylvania talks that way. (Applause.) They kept asking
him. He said, well, he was proud of the vote. And finally, my
opponent said, the whole thing is a complicated matter. There is
nothing complicated about supporting our troops in combat. (Applause.)

After voting for the war, but against funding it, after saying he
would have voted for the war even knowing everything we know today, my
opponent woke up this week -- (laughter) -- with new campaign advisers
and yet another new position. Suddenly, he's against it again.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: No matter how many times -- no matter how many
times he flip-flops, we were right to remove Saddam Hussein from
power. (Applause.)

I appreciate the contributions our friends and allies are making.
I spoke with Tony Blair this morning. (Applause.) He's got a clear
vision. He's a good, strong leader. Every time I talk to him, I thank
him for his contributions. You know, we put together a broad coalition
-- some 40 nations in Afghanistan, some 30 in Iraq. And I will
continue, over the next four years, to build our alliances, to
strengthen our relationships. But I will never turn over America's
national security decisions to leaders of other countries. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

THE PRESIDENT: I believe in the transformational power of
liberty. The wisest use of American strength is to advance freedom. I
like to tell the people that I've spent time with the Prime Minister of
Japan during my three-and-a-half years as President. I like him a
lot. He's a good fellow. The amazing thing about my discussions with
him is that here I am, sitting down with somebody that our country was
at war with some 60 years ago -- my dad, I'm sure your dads or
granddads fought against the Japanese. They were our sworn enemy. Yet
right after World War II, President Harry Truman and many Americans
believed that by helping the Japanese self-govern and become a
democracy, that liberty would transform an enemy into a friend. And
sure enough, it worked, because -- guess what -- Prime Minister Koizumi
and I sit around the table talking about how to make the world more
peaceful -- (applause) -- talking about how to use our respective
positions in the world to make our countries more secure and the world
a better place. Some day, an American President and a duly-elected
leader from Iraq will be sitting down at the table talking about how to
keep the peace. (Applause.)

I believe that millions in the Middle East plead for silence --
plead in silence for their liberty. I believe that if given the
chance, they will embrace the most honorable form of government ever
devised by man. I believe these things because freedom is not
America's gift to the world, it is the Almighty God's gift to each man
and woman in this world. (Applause.)

This young century will be liberty's century. By promoting freedom
at home and freedom abroad, we will build a safer world and more
hopeful America. By reforming our systems of government, we'll help
more Americans realize their dreams. We'll spread ownership and
opportunity to every corner of the land. We will pass the enduring
values of our country on to a new generation, and we will continue to
work for freedom and peace. (Applause.)

For all Americans -- for all Americans, these years in our history
will always stand apart. There are quiet times in the life of a nation
when little is expected of its leaders. This isn't one of those
times. This is a time when we need firm resolve, clear vision, and a
deep faith in the values that makes this a great nation. (Applause.)

None of us will ever forget that week when one era ended another
began. On September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the ruins of the Twin
Towers. It's a day I'll never forget. There were workers in hard hats
yelling at me, "Whatever it takes." I remember trying to console the
first responders, the brave firefighters and policemen who had gone
into rubble and come out empty-handed. A lot of them had come out
empty-handed. They'd lost their buddies. A guy looked me right in the
eye and he said, "Do not let me down." (Applause.) I wake up every
morning thinking about how to better protect our country. I will never
relent in defending America, whatever it takes. (Applause.)

Four years ago, as I traveled this great state asking for the vote,
I made a pledge that if you gave me a chance to serve, I would uphold
the honor and the dignity of the office to which I had been elected.
With your help and with your hard work, I will do so for the next four
years.